Of Metamorphmagi
by Bailation
Summary: Follow Teddy Lupin through his life as he finds his place in the Wizarding World. Being almost-raised by Harry Potter, falling into "more than friends" with Victoire, and suffering through Herbology at Hogwarts is just the beginning.
1. A New Life

The day that truly ended the war was the day Harry got to see his godson for the first time.

He was going to drop by Andromeda's house two weeks after the last battle, in which he had defeated the most evil wizard of all time. Harry knew he needed to do the mourning and help pick up the pieces Voldemort and his Death Eaters had left for the rest of the Wizarding world before he could move on with anything normal in his life.

Ron, of course, was still mourning the loss of his brother, though he wasn't nearly as depressed as George, for whom the whole Weasley family was deeply worried. Nevertheless, Ron had accompanied Hermione to Australia, where she was finding her parents and restoring their memories.

Harry smiled as he approached Andromeda's house, thinking about Ron and Hermione. They really did need some time away together after what he had witnessed in the midst of the last battle.

Harry knocked on the big wooden door that stood ominously before him. He was glad he was finally going to see Teddy Lupin in person. Plus, it really would be good for Andromeda if he could take Teddy off her hands from time to time. Though she hadn't fought in the war, she still had lost a husband and a daughter. Harry didn't even bother thinking of the death of her murderous sister; he was still too bitter.

The door opened and Harry was greeted by a weary-looking Andromeda. Her brown hair was struggling against her usually neat bun, but her eyes brightened at the sight of Harry.

"Oh, Harry!" she exclaimed. "I'm so glad you're here…Teddy's been driving me mad…I finally just got him down for a nap…Come see…"

She seemed extremely frazzled, and Harry wished he could take Teddy away right then and there.

She led Harry into Teddy's nursery, where the now one-year-old was sleeping. Harry looked over the crib's bars and couldn't help but smile.

Teddy's choice of hair color today was green, and his eyelashes flashed between yellow, orange, and purple in his sleep. Though he was a Metamorphmagus, Harry still recognized traits that he possessed that reminded him of Tonks and Lupin. He had Tonks' heart-shaped face, and Lupin's pale skin.

A sudden horrible thought struck Harry: What if Teddy was to become a werewolf like his father?

"Andromeda," said Harry. "Is it possible for Teddy to become…?"

Andromeda looked over at Harry and read the fear in his eyes. She considered him and shrugged. "It's possible. I'm taking him into St. Mungo's tomorrow and the Healers will perform a spell for them to tell if he'll grow up…normal." When Harry continued to feel worried, Andromeda patted him on the shoulder and said, "Harry, I wouldn't worry. It's a very rare thing, especially since werewolves usually don't breed."

Harry glanced back at his godson, then turned back to Andromeda. "Can I take him out later when he wakes up? Just for a little while," he assured Andromeda.

Andromeda considered him for a moment. "Alright. But he has to be back by eight, alright? He needs to get enough rest before St. Mungo's tomorrow."

Harry grinned and looked back at Teddy. He vaguely heard Andromeda say something about going to put on a pot of tea, but he wasn't fully listening.

"I promise you," said Harry to the sleeping child, "I'm going to be the proper godfather to you, just like mine was to me. You and me, we're going to make your parents proud. Nothing's going to happen to you while I'm around. You can count on that, Ted."


	2. Teddy Plus Victoire

Teddy Lupin was two years old when his best friend entered his life.

Harry had decided to take him down to Weasley Wizard Wheezes to visit Ron and George, who both shared part ownership of the shop. While looking at the Pygmy Puffs (one of which Teddy desired more than anything, the one that could change its fur color, just like Teddy) Harry and the Weasleys received a Patronus from Bill Weasley informing them that Fleur (who had been pregnant for quite a while) was in labor.

Teddy wasn't quite sure what this meant, but Harry had whisked him away to St. Mungo's with Ron and George in tow before he could ask many questions.

Now, they sat in the waiting room to St. Mungo's, and Teddy had found a blonde boy his age to play with. Mostly, Teddy and the boy would play with the miniature-sized Quidditch players Harry had bought Teddy and the blonde boy would watch, fascinated, as Teddy's hair changed with his mood.

"How do you do that?" asked the boy, as a miniature version of Ginny Weasley (Captain of the Holyhead Harpies) flew by.

"It does it on its own," replied Teddy, as his hair turned pink with flattery without his control.

One hour later, Harry led Teddy into the hospital room where Fleur lay in a bed with a small bundle in her arms, Bill close at her side. Teddy didn't know what the bundle was until Harry lifted him up and showed him the tiny baby curled into Fleur's side.

"'Er name eez Victoire, Teddy," said Fleur. "Eesn't she beautiful?"

Teddy could only stare. He had never seen anything so small and fragile, he was sure he would break her if he ever even laid a finger on her. There was light blonde fuzz growing out of the baby's head, quite unlike the rest of the Weasleys. But when she opened her eyes, the blue irises that his uncles Bill, Percy, George and Ron all possessed told all of them that she was a true Weasley. She _was _truly beautiful.

"She's gonna be my best friend," said Teddy, as his hair turned bright blue with happiness at his new friendship. "You just wait."

Harry smiled at his godson, and said, "C'mon, Ted. I think we should leave Bill and Fleur alone with Victoire."

Harry and Teddy led the rest of the Weasleys out of the small room, leaving the room empty except for Bill, Fleur and Victoire.

"I'm gonna call her V, Harry," said Teddy on their way back to his grandmother's. "And we're gonna go to Hogwarts together, and be best friends forever. You just wait."

Harry could only grin as he led Teddy into Andromeda's house.


	3. The Weasley Party

At seven years old, Teddy was adventurous and rebellious, or as rebellious as a seven year old could be. He sought out trouble, which worried his grandmother about his future behavior.

However, Harry seemed to find it highly amusing, especially when Teddy would come inside after a day of play with Victoire, dripping head to toe in mud. Andromeda would scold both him and Harry ("Oh yes, _you _can laugh, you don't have to clean him up!") and demand that his godfather take Victoire home to Shell Cottage.

On one particularly hot day, the Weasleys had gathered at Harry and Ginny's for no particular reason but to be together. Andromeda and Teddy had come too, because Harry was determined to keep Teddy involved in every family event that went on.

Earlier that year, Harry and Ginny had had their first child, who they named James. Teddy hadn't felt quite happy about this new addition to his life, especially since the new baby made him feel like his godfather was replacing him, but when Harry reassured him that he would always have a relationship with him that he and James could never have, Teddy was reminded that Harry wasn't his father to begin with.

Halfway through the party, the Weasley children were running wild through the Potters' many acres of land. George and Angelina's two-year-old son, Fred, was running off with Dominique, Victoire's three-year-old younger sister, through the soft green grass that coated the earth around the Potters' home. Teddy and Victoire were sitting on the grass in the Potters' yard, along with Percy and Audrey's two daughters, Molly and Lucy (who were four and two), listening to Hermione tell stories about Harry and Ron, while the two men pulled faces and groaned behind her just when she reached the climax of each story.

"…so in our second year at Hogwarts, a Slytherin named Draco Malfoy called me a very offensive name that I will not repeat," Hermione smirked as she glanced over at Ron, who was shooting her a pleading look. She only grinned sinisterly and continued. "And Ron's wand had been broken in the beginning of the year, but that's a whole different story. Your Uncle Ron," she said, addressing Victoire, Molly and Lucy, "tried to curse Draco Malfoy for calling me that name, but his wand backfired, and he ended up puking up slugs for two hours straight!" Hermione could hardly contain her laughter by the end of the story, and Teddy and Weasleys joined in, rolling on the grass in fits of giggles.

"You know they'll never forget that," grumbled Ron to Hermione, while she was able to cease her guffaws long enough to look up at him. "Exactly, it'll be more fun for me when they repeat it to their friends that the famous Ron Weasley barfed up slugs for a girl in his second year!"

"Yeah, thanks, as if I haven't been ripped on enough for that story," mumbled Ron, though he smirked a bit as he turned his back on her.

However, Hermione grabbed his arm and pulled his face toward hers. "I love you," she giggled, though Teddy could tell she was serious.

This seemed to break whatever moody spell Ron was under and he said, "Love you too" before gently kissing her lips, to which Teddy and the Weasley children groaned and pulled faces.

"Oh, hush! It'll happen to all of you one day!" Hermione told them, standing up and walking back to the Potters' porch with Ron's arm around her waist.

* * *

Later on, while the sun was setting, Teddy and Victoire were hidden behind a bush in Ginny's garden, hiding from the other Weasleys.

Teddy had kept his promise for the last five years of his life. He and Victoire were best of friends, and he intended them to stay like that forever.

"What's that?" he asked Victoire, as he pointed to a small flower peeking out of the bush. They had a game where she would tell him the French word for anything he pointed out. Victoire's first language had been French, thanks to her mother, but was quickly translated into English, thanks to Teddy. Fleur still spoke French to Victoire, determined to keep her native nationality in her daughter's life. However, this was often ruined by the rest of the Weasley family, who spoke nothing but English.

Victoire looked up and glanced at the flower. "_C'est une fleur._" Like my mum." In a way, this game was used to teach Teddy a second language, especially since he was fascinated by Victoire in every way. However, she seemed to get bored with it much faster than he did.

"You're mum's a _flower_?" asked Teddy, his eyes flashing from blue to green to violet with interest, and with his (at the moment) uncontrollable metamorphmagi.

"_No_," said Victoire, frowning impatiently at him. "Her name means "flower" in French, dummy."

"Oh," said Teddy, his hair now flashing so many different colors from embarrassment it was impossible to keep track.

Victoire laughed, her long, waist-length silver-blonde hair getting tossed over her shoulder as her blue eyes danced teasingly at him. "How do you do that?"

"Do what?" Teddy grinned, though he already knew she was asking about his metamorphmagi. His hair flashed faster and she laughed again. He didn't care that she was as fascinated about his ability to change his appearance as he was about her French; he only loved to make her laugh.

"How do you make yourself look different every time I see you?" elaborated Victoire.

"Dunno," he said, ruffling his now bright green hair, which matched the grass they sat on. "It does it on its own."

Victoire smiled at him, then peeked around the bush they were hiding behind at the sinking sun on the horizon. Teddy watched her carefully for a long time, and as he did, he watched her face suddenly fill with sadness.

Teddy looked into her blue eyes and saw tears forming. "V, what's the matter?"

"Teddy!" sobbed Victoire, her face in her hands. "I think my mama and daddy don't want me anymore!"

Teddy took her hands away from her face and held them in his. "What do you mean?"

"Well, they've already had Dominique, and now Mama's gonna have another baby…what if it's because they don't want me anymore?"

Teddy put an arm around and her and held her close. He knew how she felt. He had felt like a sudden outcast in Harry's life when James had entered their lives, but he now realized that he and Harry had a special relationship, especially since he had been in Harry's life seven years longer than James.

Victoire was five years old, two years younger than him, but he felt like she was much younger than that, especially at times like these. "V, that's not true at all! Your mum and dad still want you; they just want you to have brothers and sisters to be friends with."

Victoire gave him a watery smile. "I don't need brothers and sisters Ted. I have you."

Teddy smiled back. "You'll always have me, V."


	4. A Gift From Harry

In a sleepy cottage deep within Godric's Hollow, nine-year-old Teddy explored the many levels of the cozy home, his curiosity sparking at every corner.

Harry and Ginny's new home was filled with dozens of boxes, for they had just moved in the day before. Their flat had finally gotten too small when Ginny had given birth to a second child earlier that year, a boy they named Albus Severus. Harry had always wanted to be close to his parents' graves and his old home that he had never gotten to grow up in. Therefore, he, Ginny, James, and Albus decided to move into a cottage in Godric's Hollow.

At the moment, Harry was downstairs looking through a box of old books. He opened one of them and chuckled to himself. Teddy, who had been watching him, said, "What's so funny?"

Harry jumped at the sound of his presence, and held up the book. "It's my old photo album. Hagrid gave it to me at the end of my first year at Hogwarts, and it had a lot of pictures of my parents, but I remember filling it with a few photos of my own too…"

Teddy approached him and peeked at the photographs. For about ten pages, there were a whole collection of photographs of Harry, Ron and Hermione throughout their school years. Harry and Ron playing chess in what appeared to be the Gryffindor common room, with Hermione reading a book on the couch…Harry and Ron playing Quidditch…The last photograph of the page was of the trio lying lazily by the edge of the lake at Hogwarts.

"Where's Ginny?" asked Teddy, looking up at his godfather.

"Oh, erm…we weren't _terribly_ good friends in the first few years of school, we started dating sixth year, but Ron and Hermione have been my best friends since I was eleven years old." Harry flipped through the album quickly and stopped abruptly. "See, there's one!"

The photo was of Harry and Ginny, who both looked like they were in their later teen years. Harry smiled at the photo. "I think that was just before Dumbledore died, Ron wasn't quite happy that I was dating his sister, but he accepted it eventually. But there is something that I want to show you, Ted…" He flipped through the album once again until he was in the very back of the book. The second to last page had a one picture attached to it, showing a group of several fierce-looking people.

Harry pointed to the photo, and Teddy noticed what the caption read: _Order of the Phoenix, 1978._

Teddy recognized his father right away; he had seen photos of him since he was very young. In this particular picture, however, Remus Lupin looked happier than his son had ever seen him in any other photo. His hair was darker and he looked younger and more carefree than he had looked in other photos. He was smiling and waving at the camera, and stood in the second row of people of the Order of the Phoenix, between two other men, one of whom looked just like Harry.

"That's my dad," Harry told him, pointing to the man on Remus's left. This man had very dark hair, just like Harry, and wore a cocky smile as he waved at the camera. "And my mum's on his other side."

Teddy's eyes drifted to James' left side, where a very pretty-looking woman with dark red hair stood. Teddy noticed that she possessed Harry's green eyes. She, too, looked very happy.

His eyes drifted back to his father and to the man on his right side. "Who's that?"

"That's Sirius," said Harry, his eyes suddenly getting a misty and faraway look in them. "He was my godfather, and he died while I was in my fifth year. My dad, your dad, and Sirius were all best friends during their years at Hogwarts."

Teddy was silent as he scanned the rest of the photo to see if he knew anyone else. He saw Hagrid in the background, whom he had met numerous times. He also recognized Mad-Eye Moody, who had died before he was born, but who was a legend within the wizarding community.

"Where's my mum in this picture?" asked Teddy, noticing that he couldn't find his mother Metamorphagus among the Order members.

"Sorry, Ted," said his godfather, "but your mum wasn't in the Order the year this was taken, she was too young. But she joined the Order right after she left Hogwarts, you should be proud of that. Anyway, I have something else to show you…" Harry flipped the page, and Teddy smiled at what he saw.

It was a picture of his parents. His father looked much different than he had in the Order photo; he looked much older than his actually age, and Teddy knew it was the fact that he was a werewolf that made his hair so much grayer and the lines of his face become more prominent. Teddy himself had had the possibility of becoming a werewolf, and it was something his grandmother and Harry had worried about for a while when he was younger. He was finally determined "normal" at the age of four, much to his family's relief.

In the photo, Teddy's mother sat next to his father (Teddy had been told that her name was Nymphadora, but she preferred to be called by her maiden name, Tonks), and she was positively glowing. A prominent bump made up her lower torso; she was clearly pregnant with her son. Her hair was a dark violet and her eyes were close to the same color.

Harry pointed to Tonks in the picture. "I remember Tonks would change her hair color almost every day. When I first met her, she loved to change to shape her nose for Hermione and Ginny."

Teddy smiled, wishing he had some kind of memory to remember his mother, like Harry did. He watched his mother wave at the camera as his father put an arm around her. Teddy smiled again and his hair turned the exact color of his mother's in the picture. Harry laughed.

"You know what, Ted?" said Harry. "I'm going to let you borrow this album." He gave the book to Teddy, who looked dumbfounded. "But I'll be wanting it back, all except that last picture." He grinned at his godson. "They're your parents; you should be able to have a photo or two of them."

Teddy grinned as his hair flashed many different colors. "Thanks, Harry!"

When he had returned home, Teddy had locked himself in his room away from his grandmother, and had just stared at his parents' faces He had found a few other pictures of his parents within the book, most of which where they were at the Burrow surrounded by the rest of the Weasleys. . He felt like he learned more about his parents each time he looked at a new photo. In each photo, his mother had different colored hair, quite like Teddy. She had his heart-shaped face too, just like Teddy, and she looked exceedingly young. Teddy thought she had been a very pretty woman.

His father, on the other hand, looked very tired and worn down in all the pictures Teddy looked at. The book was organized chronologically, so the farther Teddy went into the book, the older his father looked, as if he aged ten years in the course of only one year.

Teddy finally sighed and carefully put the book away where it could be safe; he knew how important the book was to Harry, and he couldn't risk bringing any harm to it. Not only did it have photos of his parents, but Harry's parents as well. The one thing that Teddy and Harry had exceedingly in common was the fact that they both were orphans, and that they could both sympathize with each other because of it.

Teddy looked up at his wall, where he had already used Spellotape to hang up the one photo of his parents that Harry was letting him keep. They waved at him, and Teddy smiled back, wishing now, more than ever, that they were still with him.


	5. Ron's Lesson on Girls

"V, it's going to be alright!"

Teddy's hair was flashing between violet and red as he followed Victoire out of her house, where waves were crashing against the rocks below the cliff Shell Cottage was built on. After three weeks of the hottest weather Britain had ever seen, a storm was finally approaching.

On the doorstep, Teddy looked around the yard, finally spotting a mane of long blonde hair hidden behind the bush next to Fleur's garden. He approached her carefully, sitting down next to her and looking at her uncertainly. She was crying, he noticed, tears pouring down her angelic face from her gorgeous blue eyes. He wrapped an arm around the nine-year-old girl and sighed, feeling extremely guilty and wishing she was the same age as him.

"Why do you have to leave?" she murmured into his shoulder, her voice muffled. Teddy pulled her into a hug and inhaled the sweet scent of her hair. "I just have to, V. Everyone does. I wish you could come with me, I really do…"

"But I don't want to leave for Hogwarts yet!" Victoire burst out. "I want you to stay with me; I want us to be together, just messing about by the sea forever!" She turned away from him angrily, flipping her waist-length hair over her shoulder as she gazed out at the sea.

"Vic –"

"_Ne__me parlez pas!"_ snapped Victoire, throwing Teddy's arm off of her. He rolled his eyes. Victoire still resorted to her first language when she became angry enough to not communicate with him properly. He knew some French just by listening to Fleur and Victoire converse, but when she snapped at him, he usually only assumed it was something like "Don't talk to me!"

Teddy's hair flashed between colors as he got impatient and turned away. He was two years older than Victoire, and he really felt that sometimes she acted much younger than a nine-year-old. He crossed the yard and started to descend the wooden stairs that were built into the steep hill that led to the beach below Shell Cottage. He sat down onto the beach and began writing his name in the sand with a stick.

Not long after Teddy had sat down, a shadow darkened the sand he stared at and he looked up to see Ron grinning down at him. Ron and a very pregnant Hermione were visiting Shell Cottage with their daughter, Rose, along with the Potter family, who had welcomed a new member of the family only a month earlier, a daughter named Lily.

"Have you and Vic been arguing?" asked Ron, sitting down next to Teddy.

"How'd you know?" asked Teddy, moodily drawing little circles in the sand.

"Well," said Ron with raised eyebrows, "your hair was flashing many shades of red, and if I know you enough, I know that only happens when you're angry. And I also know that Vic is the only person on earth who can make you as angry as you are."

Teddy said nothing. Of course, all this was true, and they both knew it. Teddy hated admitting that they were fighting; it made him feel ashamed, especially since they were best friends. But Ron seemed to gather his feelings and stood up, holding a hand out to Teddy. "C'mon, Ted. Let's take a walk."

Teddy hesitated, than picked himself off the ground and followed Ron as they walked the shoreline of the beach.

"I'm going to give you some girl advice, Ted," said Ron seriously. "Now mind you, I've never been good with girls. In fact, I've been bloody awful. Do you know how long it took me to get up the nerve to ask Hermione to marry me?"

"Four years," said Teddy automatically.

Ron looked shocked and confused at the same time. "How'd you know that?"

Teddy shrugged. "Harry's told me stories. He even said Hermione half-proposed a few times; she had to hint to you that she wanted to get married."

"Yeah, well…remind me to have a little _chat_ with Harry next time I see him," said Ron through clenched teeth. "Anyway, what I was saying was that if there is anything I've learned from girls is that when they're upset, they love to be right. You can't disagree with them, even if they're wrong."

Teddy looked at him confusedly. "But that doesn't make any sense!"

"Welcome to the world of women, Ted. They don't make sense, and they don't care as long as they can be right and win every argument. Just remember that next time you try to convince Vic that she's wrong, she may end up ignoring you for the next few days."

Teddy was still confused, but he decided not to argue and take Ron's advice. "We were talking about going to Hogwarts, and I told her I was going. She's mad with me because I'm leaving her and she doesn't want me to go. What do I do about that?"

Ron looked puzzled, but only for a moment. "For that, Ted, I'd have to say that you have to leave her alone. Just let her have her space for a while, and let her come to you. Believe me, she'll be crawling back to you in no time, she's mad about you." Teddy's hair quickly shifted to a brighter red that caused Ron to laugh at his embarrassment.

"Plus," said Ron, "I think I could slip a few words to her." He winked at Teddy and turned away, walking up the wooden stairs back up to Shell Cottage, leaving Teddy alone on the beach.

* * *

Later that night, after Victoire had ignored Teddy for the whole day, she finally emerged from her bedroom and entered Teddy's guest room. He studied her face and saw that tear tracks stained her cheeks. Before he could say anything, however, she burst into tears and fell against him.

"Oh, V," he wrapped his arms around her and embraced her tightly. "I – I'm sorry, I'm so sorry." Unlike most boys his age, he had never felt awkward about hugging Victoire, it just came natural. He reckoned this was because he had grown up with her, and he hated to see her sad.

"I don't want you to go!" yelled Victoire finally. "I can't imagine visits to Harry's without you…and I'm afraid that once you're there, you'll forget about me."

"V," said Teddy seriously. "I'm not going to forget about you, I promise. That can't possible happen. Its only two years, and I'll see you on breaks, then you come to Hogwarts too, and we'll be together again."

Victoire beamed, a gorgeous smile breaking out across her flawless, beautiful face. "I want it to be now," she said longingly."

Teddy smiled back at her, gently squeezing her hand. "Believe me, I do too."


End file.
